Winter is not officially here yet, but it sure feels like it. School was either canceled or delayed in most counties in the New River Valley on Monday. Some sections of Floyd County had up to five inches of snow over the weekend. The main roads in Floyd County are mostly clear, but some side roads remain icy and snow covered. The temperature was about 20 degrees around lunchtime in Floyd on Monday, and big wind gusts made it feel even colder. The snow also kept law enforcement busy over the weekend.

About 1700 bicyclists rolled through the New River Valley on Sunday. The event is called Bike Virginia and this year the group chose to bike in Pulaski, Montgomery and Floyd Counties as well as the city of Radford. The bicyclists traveled from all 50 states and 12 countries for the bike rides. There were all ages and all riding levels. It lasts six days and will wrap up on Wednesday. Sunday's ride started at Pulaski High School and ended at Radford High, where most of the cyclists set up a tent city to spend the night.

The rain came in fast and furious overnight and even though it's tailing off in the afternoon, streams and creeks have been turned into raging rivers. Localized flooding has been a problem in many counties in our area. The rain came; the waters rose, and the driving was slow... “Gotta roll with the punches,” says Jack Cranford. Cranford lives off Craig Creek Road in Montgomery County. Sunday, the creek came close to flooding the road. “Can't stop the weather so you just gotta do the best you can to bear up with it,” he says.

It's a question that communities across the country face everyday: "How can we build more affordable housing?" The town of Blacksburg, like communities nationwide, has been hit hard with cuts in federal funding to help build affordable housing. But town leaders say non profits have been working with Blacksburg to find ways to stretch the money they do have. In North Blacksburg, the town plans to build eight rental units for older folks who don't have a lot of money. Blacksburg is a different animal when it comes to real estate.

A new, low-cost bus service is getting ready to hit the highway in the New River Valley. Megabus will stop at Exit 118-A off Interstate 81. The no-frills bus company will take passengers between Christiansburg, Knoxville and Washington, D.C., for as little as $1 a trip. Megabus says service will start December 15th with 56 seat buses making three daily trips.

Sunday was a day of giving and building in Blacksburg. Habitat For Humanity of The New River Valley got almost 500 volunteers to donate their time to this year's "Blitz Build. " That's where most of two homes will be built in two days. Those houses are located on Nellie's Cave Road in Blacksburg. Both homes will be energy efficient. One will be a typical stick build while the other will be made with isulated panels. But for the families, it's all about having the American Dream.

Communities across the country are realizing it's not enough to just have a website. They also need an Internet super highway running through their town. The Federal government has invested nearly 4 billion dollars in 230 different projects nationwide. These projects should increase high speed broadband internet access in some of the most underserved areas, including Southwest Virginia. Along Route 8 around Riner, crews are laying armor coated fiber optic cable 30 inches down.

Thursday and Friday around the New River Valley, you might see a handful of cyclists on the road, with a safety car trailing behind. They're biking across America to raise money to find a cure for Multiple Sclerosis or MS. Yep, they're wearing helmets that remind me of Pee Wee Herman and those funny looking, super tight shorts. But they're all business. By the time this crew's done, they'll have biked almost 4000 miles to find a cure for multiple sclerosis. Alex Solomon is leading the pack.

The family of a Radford woman killed in a car crash last month, says it's suffering through yet another tragedy. WDBJ7 New River Valley reporter Orlando Salinas tells us when Stephany Akers died, her dog Buddy was with her. Buddy survived, but within hours was taken by someone not related to Stephany's family. It's a family photo; Stephany Akers, her boys Wesley and Dakota and the family dog Buddy. "He's definitely a family member, He's been in our family for four years since he's been born.

The New River Valley has been named one of the smartest metro areas. Lumosity says it's created "online brain training exercises" and the New River Valley; Radford, Christiansburg and Blacksburg, have collectively ranked number 14 on its top 100 list of smartest cities in America. We asked a few folks what they thought about the brainy ranking. Grace Ma said "I don't know how accurate that is but it certainly feels good to be said that about haha, I'm in the smartest town! Ma's friend Alisha Rouffa jumped in and added "Kind of along the lines of saying we're the best school with the best food.

A special prosecutor has determined that the use of deadly force by New River Valley law enforcement was justified in the shooting death of a Christiansburg man in April. Robert Kevin Hughes, 41, was shot and killed by law enforcement April 10 as officers were trying to serve a felony drug warrant on him at his trailer near Christiansburg. Thomas Bowers, Commonwealth's Attorney for the City of Salem, determined that the use of deadly force was “justifiable and appropriate,” according to the report released Friday.

The New River Valley is just days away from the reopening of the revamped Radford Theatre. On Tuesday, a group of local realtors transformed into a team of super cleaners today. "Who needs scrapers, goop off, 409, clorox wipes?", Beth Dalton wants to know who needs what. The petite blonde is moving fast to find out where her crew's cleaning. She's up on the balcony and spies her co-workers, "And Lori, Jenny and Susan are vacuuming. " This team of some 25 realtors from Long and Foster are working inside the Radford Theatre.

A Radford man arrested and charged for robbing and beating a 70-year-old woman last year will enter a guilty plea on Friday. According to a news release, police found a 70-year-old woman who had been beaten and robbed when they arrived at a house on the 200 block of Ingles Street in Radford on June 15 of last year. Chase Allen Patrick, 26, of Radford was arrested and charged with robbery, aggravated malicious wounding, burglary to commit a felony while armed with a deadly weapon, grand larceny and conspiracy to commit a felony in relation to the incident.

Most people who want milk, make a quick stop to the grocery store, but there's growing demand for what some folks call "raw milk. " Robby Lisenby is co-owner of what he calls a real milk dairy farm in Floyd County. On this day, he looks more like the pied piper, leading his 7 grass-fed jersey cows on a quarter mile walk from the pasture into the milk barn. Polly, Gertrude, Ginger, Betty, Priscilla, Helen and Beulah, they each line up and get latched on, producing raw milk that's neither pasteurized nor homogenized.

The New River Valley Roller Girls take on the Charlotte Roller Girls on Saturday, June 8 at World Adventure in Christiansburg, starting at 6 p.m. The team is also looking for new girls and will have Recruitment Night on Tuesday, June 25 at World Adventure in Christiansburg at 7 p.m. For more information and schedules, click here .

One of the busiest bridges in the New River Valley is closer to completion. The Route 114 New River Bridge has been under construction for several years now. It was built in 1933 and has been the most direct road between Radford and Blacksburg. The project included installing 16 drilled shafts some as deep as 68 feet into the New River. The Virginia Department of Transportation says the replacement bridge is almost ready. It still needs to work on the drainage and build the medians.

On Wednesday at Radford University, business and local leaders had a roundtable discussion about exceptionally gifted foreigh students and how they impact the local economy. Educators say some of the nearly 1 million foreign born Virginia residents are seeking out advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and math, STEM for short. It's that expertise that local leaders want to keep. Radford Mayor and course instructor Bruce Brown said STEM graduates will always be welcome,"Those STEM grads whether it not be in their specialty or their field, are going to have jobs in the New River Valley to raise familys, worship, stay around.

People in the New River Valley are keeping an eye on the New River, wondering if it will jump its banks. Along the New River in Pulaski County near Bowman's Ferry Road, there is trash, twigs, and logs floating downstream. We spoke with Hiwassee Fire Chief Quack Boyd on Tuesday morning, and he said "come on down we've got some homes surrounded by water.” Sure enough, Boyd was right. We drove down into Alisonia - just below Hiwassee - and it seems like the same homes that were caught in last January's flood were surrounded by the New River again.

Bisset Park in Radford is now closed. =============================== 8:32 a.m. Tuesday : Appalachian Power opened the Claytor Lake Dam on Monday night because of heavy rain in the New River Valley, according to a news release from the City of Radford. The New River is expected to crest at about 13 feet on Tuesday night around 8 p.m. The City of Radford is anticipating some localized flooding to streets and homes. New River Drive and the Riverway (bikeway/walkway)